Granted, following a star doesn’t exactly give you pinpoint geographical accuracy . . .
Granted, following a star doesn’t exactly give you pinpoint
geographical accuracy; but all the same, I’ve never been able to figure out why
the wise men first go to King Herod to request the whereabouts of the newborn
king of the Jews. If you ask me, it’s
not very wise to visit the reigning king and begin inquiring about his
replacement. But then again, by going to
King Herod, they do learn the proper location of the Messiah’s birth.
It is the chief priests and scribes who end up divulging
this information. They tell an unsettled
and anxious King Herod, when he asks about it: “In Bethlehem of Judea; for so
it has been written by the prophet: ‘And you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah,
are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; for from you shall come a
ruler who is to shepherd my people Israel.’”
Of course, this begs the question—If the chief priests and
scribes already know that the Messiah is to be born in the little town of Bethlehem,
then why are they still hanging around Jerusalem? Notice that they do not follow the wise men
as they continue on with their quest.
What a difference there is between these two groups! The wise men are operating only under the
supposition that the portents they have detected in the night sky are
correct. But who knows? Perhaps they have misinterpreted the heavens
and its cryptic code. If so, they have
made a long and arduous journey—at great expense, mind you—all for nothing!
Meanwhile, the chief priests and scribes have the prophecy
right there in their hands. They are
much better informed, and certainly better versed in scripture. And yet this knowledge has not motivated them
to budge one square inch. The wise men,
who are not even Jewish, are willing to travel a thousand miles, simply because
of a hunch; whereas the chief priests and scribes, the leaders of the Jewish
faith, seem content to stand there and watch from the sidelines.
If there is a moral here (and I suspect there is), it might
be something along the lines of how it doesn’t really matter how many sermons
you’ve heard, or how many Bible studies you’ve attended, or how many scriptural
verses you can recite by heart—if you aren’t willing to move when the Holy
Spirit nudges you, then what’s the point?
After all, the chief priests and scribes have the right answer; but they
stay put. The wise men are so clueless
that they have to stop and ask for directions.
But in Matthew’s Gospel, they are the first ones to bow down and worship
the Lord!
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